WHO: Kaden and Anna.WHAT: Kaden stops in for a chat.WHERE: Anna's place.WHEN: Sunday afternoon.WHY: Because Kaden is friendly!PROMPT: 018. Dragons.

Anna wasn't the sort that locked her doors when she was home, and any passers-by would see that the door to her bungalow was wide open. Just now, she was doing her usual exersize routine, doing one-armed push-ups. Maybe she wasn't in the military anymore, but she'd be damned if she gave up a regime that worked so bloody well for her.

The sniper was tall and well-built, fiery and wild red hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, though the exertion had caused some of it to fall out. Despite the heat, she had her combat boots on, camo cargo pants, and a grey singlet emblazoned with the letters 'ADF'.

Her expression was hardened with concentration, sweat standing out against her fair and freckled skin.

The teenaged werewolf pulls out her mirror to check her hair before turning to look up the steps of the bungalow. The door is open, obviously welcoming new people, so she makes her way up the steps. She raises her manicured hand to knock on the door, gently. She steps back, waiting for a response from someone within.

The Aussie looked up at the knock and managed a strained smile.

"G'day," she said, "C'mon in, I'm nearly finished. Grab a beer from the fridge if you like."

Anna didn't break stride in her workout, though her smile faded back into a grimace as she continued her push-ups.

Kaden giggles a little. "Thanks for the offer but I already got plans to get drunk with that Lindsey guy, don't wanna get too wasted too soon." She gives a slight smirk, stepping inside. She watches the woman work out for a moment, deciding that she herself needs to hit the gym. "My name's Kaden! I'm a couple bungalows up, in number 11 with Page and Gage."

With a grunt, she finished her workout and stood, stretching and wiping her forehead. Crossing over to the fridge, she pulled out a bottled water, "Nice to meet you, Kaden. Me name is Anna. Can I get you anythin' else to drink?"

"Gage is a really cool dude," she says with a grin, nodding her head. "Him and his brother--also my boyfriend, Page--let me perform cooking experiments on them without complaint, although I think they're just happy to be eating something that doesn't go in a microwave..." She laughs quietly. "Oh, I'm fine! Nice to meet you, too!"

"I'm among the cooking impaired, meself," Anna grinned back, chugging about half of her water bottle in one go, "I do all right, but I'm used to some other bastard serving up meals. So how're you going? Been here long?"

"My mother was a chef in a French restaraunt before she died, so I kinda... inherited the culinary abilities." Kaden looks over at the other woman with a smirk. "It was either learn to cook or eat my father's version of chicken. Death would've been better than THAT." She snickers softly, shaking her head. "No, been here since about... July? So not very long, although it feels like I've known everyone here my whole life, which is really cool!"

Anna laughed, liking her exuberance, and nodded.

"Me father wasn't much of a cook either, but I grew up on base, so I got used to mess hall cookin'," she said, "Get many keen jobs here? Seems like the sorts that come here would attract some top-dollar assignments."

"Well, I very recently had to rescue my boyfriend from an evil baby, a guy who throws lightning bolts... and this really fugly chick! Not sure if that counts as 'keen' since I don't know what 'keen' means, but it was interesting!" She bounces a little, giggling.

"Wasn't really a paid job, but saving Page was really great." Kaden grins from ear to ear at the thought of him.

"Must be a special bloke if you saved him for free," the sniper smirked, "Good onya, Kaden."

Anna finished off her bottled water and refilled it with the kitchen tap, placing it in the fridge for later.

"How is the pay for jobs you don't do pro bono?" she wondered, "Don't have to quote me figures, I'm not that bloody rude."

She winked and moved to sit on the couch, motioning for Kaden to join her if she wanted.

Kaden plops down on the couch, blushing a little. "I don't really know, since that was my first one." She looks up at Anna with a smirk. "Although it was REALLY fun, getting to use my sharp-shooting skills on all the guards and shit! Seeing people's heads explode was really fun!"

Just because she'd just had her first job didn't mean she was necessarily all freelance. Anna had trained in the miltary for a few years before she'd been given any legitimate assignments.

"Well, I'm not old enough to join the military just yet, so for now it's contract." Kaden gives her a playful wink. "I don't think I'd ever do military anyway, though." She looks Anna up and down. 'No offense or anything, I just would hate moving so much. I wanna settle down with Page, somewhere, and have kids.."

Anna laughed and shook her head at her.

"Not old enough to be in the military, but old enough to blow off some poor bastards fucking head, hey?" she grinned, "No worries, it's not for everyone. I was an amatuer sharpshooter before I joined the service, but didn't get trained proper until I enlisted at 17. You've got a fair bloody headstart, I'd say."

The Aussie didn't comment on the idea of settling down. It was a rather alien concept to her at the present.

"Old enough to get shot, too!" She rolls her sleeve up to show the slightly bloodied bandage just near her shoulder. "Coolest battlescar I'll ever have, I think, 'cause when I'm older, people will be all 'oh how'd you get that?' and I can be like 'well, I had to go to the Yukon to rescue my soulmate from an evil baby genius...'"

"Evil baby genius?" she said, raising her eyebrows high. Kaden had mentioned it earlier, but she had thought it was a bit of embellishment on the young womans part, "What's the story there?"

The older sniper, from what Kaden could see, was wholly unmarked. So long as you didn't count her freckles.

"His name's S Bod." Kaden nods a little. "Him and... Baldasarre, the lightning dude, and Salma, the fugly one bust into our dance and shot everyone with tranquilizers, including Page, Gage, Eddie, and myself." She bites her lip, remembering trying to drag Page to the door. "But for me and Eddie, the tranqs didn't last long enough 'cause we're not really human, so we woke up and had to fight off all these evil cocksucking minions! I turned into a wolf, along with my good friend Alijah, and the two of us managed to rip some guys apart. I grabbed the guy who had S Bod, brought his pathetic little self over to the others and where they interrogated him, using their tits for bribery. Me and Lijah went outside and followed scent trails to the landing pad where I found the coordinates. We flew to the Yukon to rescue everyone, 'cause about nine people got kidnapped."

"Fucking hell!" Anna exclaimed, eyes wide, "That sounds like a bloody mess! Doesn't this place have any security?"

The fact that Kaden was some sort of... wolf person had caught her attention, but the fact that some bastards had busted in on them and laid them all out was a little disturbing.

Kaden shrugs a little.. "Beats the fuck out of me! Normally the place isn't so dramatic, although I have had to fight people for him, before."

This she had to see. If she didn't know better, she'd think it was a joke, but Anna was certain Kaden wasn't bullshitting her.

"Valcore can be a little frightening at first glance," Kaden warns, then motions toward the window. Sure enough, outside there is a large, black and red dragon standing a few feet away, looking quite fierce. "My little one, Onyx, is a sweetie most of the time, though."

Anna jumped a little. How had she not HEARD that come up outside the bungalow!?

"Fuck me, that's a hell of a thing," the sniper muttered, "And how did you come by a thing like that? Beat a bloody wizard at poker?"

Kaden has to laugh at the woman's reaction, since it's a very typical one, and it makes her think of Alijah's first reaction. "My boyfriend conjured him up, 'cause he can raise dead things."

"He and his brother are along the same lines, then," Anna said, watching the dragon warily as she spoke, "Where did you find the body of a bloody dragon, exactly?"

"Page found him in Hell, I think." Kaden nods a little, waving at Valcore with a grin.

"In Hell," Anna repeated drolly, "Just 'round the corner, hey?"

She shook her head, rather caught off guard by Kaden's rather flippant recollections of such supernatural and out of the ordinary things. Well, out of the ordinary for her, anyway.

"How old are you again?" she wondered. Anna was fairly sure she hadn't said, but she looked young.

"Sixteen, why?" she asks, biting her lip. Oh, this isn't going to be another 'you're too young'-conversation, she hopes. She's gotten several talks like that from Chris, and none have ended very well...

"You've done more in sixteen years than I've done in twenty-six, darlin," Anna laughed, "Bloody hell, I feel like a slack arse now. What do your parents make of all this?"

Anna gestured around, meaning... well. Everything.

"Make of what?" she asks, looking a little confused. Being that she was born and raised in a family of werewolves, not a lot of this seems that... strange to her. She's used to expecting the unexpected.

"Bein' a sniper at sixteen," Anna prompted, "Gettin' your boyfriend to raise a bloody dragon from the dead in Hell. You know, that sort of thing. For contrast, love, consider that I didn't join the miltary until seventeen. Your sort grow up extra fast?"

She had mentioned not being human, and the wolf stuff, but she hadn't said much else.

"Not really," Kaden says, shaking her head from side to side. "I just... I grew up in family of werewolves, my mom died when I was seven, I lived in Manhattan... you just kind of get used to expecting shit to be out of the ordinary, you know? Plus, being caught offguard is a pretty bad thing."

"Sorry about your mum," Anna said quietly, "Mine died when I was ten. What made you want to get into this business so young, then? Bloody brave of you, I'll tell you what."

Anna wondered if her childhood had ended at seven, sort of how hers ended at ten.

"I want to avenge my mom's death," she admits, quietly. "My dad runs a modelling agency and one of the girls that he turned away went fucking beserk and yeah." She nods a little.

The Aussie let out a low whistle. That was some heavy stuff... it certainly explained a lot.

"Bloody hell," she said, "Good luck to you. Dunno how much more trainin' you actually need, but if you want sniping pointers, darlin, I've been doin it for six years. If it weren't classified information, I'd tell you that I had sixteen kills acknowledged by the ADF, but..."

Anna winked roguishly at her, "You'll just have to take me word for it, that I know what I'm doin'."

Kaden giggles a little at that. "I suppose I will!" she says with a grin. "I'd take you up on the tips, but I kinda wanna learn it myself, you know? Not that I'll need much help, considering I got a Barrett semi-auto that'll turn people into Swiss cheese..."

"Learn yourself?" Anna chuckled, winking, "You are young, aren't you? To each their own, I reckon, but you do yourself a disservice not learnin' from other folks with more experience. I use a AS50 meself, but I can shoot from bloody far away because of me... special talent."

The sniper tapped one of her temples and winked, standing up.

"Tell you what, I'll show you me baby," she grinned, "Not many folks who can appreciate it."

Kaden stands up slowly, grinning from ear to ear. "I mean, I do have a couple friends where if they tell me how to do something, I'll do it, but otherwise I'd like to figure it out. There's a lot of people like you and me on the island, though." She nods a little. "Voltaire's like... one of the coolest assholes I've ever known."

"Coolest arsehole?" Anna repeated, laughing as she stepped out of the room for a moment, "I thought all men had that bloody ability. Just a moment."

There was some zipping and shuffling, and Anna returned into the main room with a massive rifle, grinning ear to ear.

"This is Wallaby," she introduced, "She's gas operated, semi-automatic, and blows the fucking hell out of anything she hits."

The scope was a little larger than Kaden was probably used to seeing, and Anna had kept it in brand-new condition.

"Jumpin' Jesus on tap shoes," Kaden mutters upon seeing the gun... but she's smart, and looks with her eyes and not with her hands, no matter how badly she wants to. She herself can be a little particular about people touching Barry--yeahyeah, original name. "Dude. That thing is fucking hot."

"I know," Anna said, managing to grin a little wider, "She's a beauty. Box magazine," the sniper detached it to show her the rounds, .50 BMG, "Five shots. Custom scope," Anna locked the magazine back into place and sighed, "I break her down in three minutes, which is the only down side. She's too bloody huge for a fast exit, but it hasn't been a problem yet."

Kaden grins up at her. "Don't worry, I dragged mine out to my boyfriend's bungalow, wearing a camou bikini and an army hat, once." She giggles excitedly at the thought. "I've been known to show mine off, too. Especially to him, because apparently having a girlfriend who kills people is sexy..."

After she tucked Wallaby away safe and sound, she chuckled, shaking her head.

"I don't," she teased, "But I'll take your word for it. Seems to me like you've got amazing in spades."

The Aussie gestured to the dragon out the window and laughed.

Kaden giggles, bouncing up and down again. "I got another small one at home, he's just a little baby but he's so fun to talk to!" She puts her hand at her knee. "He's this big, and all blue."

"And did that one come from Hell, too?" Anna wondered glibly, arching an eyebrow.

She shakes her head vigorously. "No, he's a living, breathing dragon. He's the very last one."

"Except for that one," the sniper said, nodding out the window, "Got it. I'm a fierce quick study."

"Well... kind of." Kaden wrinkles her nose. "Valcore's a dragon but he's not alive and he's not dead. Onyx is the last one that's alive. There's no more after him."

"A bloody undead dragon, then," Anna said, wondering if her eyebrows were going to end up permantly stuck high on her forehead, "Can you ride it? I reckon you'd save on airfare that way."

"I choose not to, 'cause I think it's kind of demeaning, but I did once before." Kaden nods a little. "It was scary as fuck and yeah."

"Demeaning?" the Aussie repeated, brow creasing a little, "How do you figure? I reckon he'd barely notice you, a big critter like that."

"Imagine being forced to crawl around on your hands and knees, carrying someone around all day," she reasons, stuffing her hands in her pockets. "Dragons are very intelligent. More intelligent than any human in the world."

"I just meant flying, love, but I suppose you've got a point," Anna said, not entirely convinced. She wasn't about to get into a debate about an undead dragon, though. Anna didn't know one goddamn thing about dragons, undead or otherwise.

"This place is bloody incredible," she chuckled, "I thought I saw some strange things abroad, but I don't know how I'm going to top an undead dragon and a teenage sniper werewolf."

Anna grinned and stood, crossing over to the fridge. It was now, officially, Beer O'Clock.

"Sure you don't want a drink?" she said, holding up a can.

"Well, my Onyx can't even stand to be held for too long," she points out, smirking a little. "He has to be free to go as he wants... which usually means he sits on my shoulders while I do all the walking." She rolls her eyes dramatically, before giggling. "They're very, very picky creatures, I'll say that..." She shakes her head, giggling a little. "No thank you, love."

Anna closed the fridge and returned to the couch.

"Only pet I had was a domesticated Dingo," Anna said, "Well, as domesticated as they get, anyway. I thought that was an interesting pet."

She shook her head, "I suppose a critter that smart isn't a pet though, hey?"

Kaden shakes hwer head vigorously. "Uh-uh!" She sits down on the couch beside Anna. "I'm actually Onyx's foster-mom. He calls me his Mommy, and Chris is his Dad."

With a short laugh, Anna gave Kaden a nudge.

"Less work for you in the future then, hey?" she winked, "Already got a wee one!"

Kaden blushes, giggling a little. "No, not any less work, honestly. Dragons learn things at an extremely accelerated rate. Like, he's only a few months old, and I'm already contemplating teaching him to read."

"I meant the giving birth bit, but at least that means he won't act like a teenager too long," Anna grinned.

"I plan on popping a couple out by the time I'm your age, anyway," she says with a giggle. "Oh God, he's already starting to act like one."

"I reckon having a dragon for an older brother'll be lucky," Anna laughed, "Bloody hell, you've got everything worked out already, haven't you? Me most forward thinking plan is to retire at 40 and open me own firin' range."

Kaden blushes a little. "Not really worked out YET, haven't really talked to the boyfriend about kids, although we do talk about getting married, sometimes." She looks down at her hands, bashfully.

"Might want to bring it up," Anna winked, "But I reckon you've got a fair while before you settle down... then again, I've heard a few folks here have kids, so I suppose I'm a bit outdated in me thinkin' on that subject."

She took a long pull from her beer and shrugged.

"Seems bloody nervy, havin' relationships in this business," Anna said, feeling a bit like a broken record, "'Specially with all sorts of crazy wankers comin' after you."

"We got..." Kaden counts on her fingers. "Four different sorts of families with kids on the island, last I checked. Of course. some of those kids are fully grown adults so I don't know if they count or not, but yeah." She says, shrugging her shoulders. "It helps to get close to the people that you work with. It's nice to go through something horrible and then right after, be able to hug them and cry or whatever."

"I'm used to workin' with a squad or a team," Anna nodded, "We'd be mates on longer missions, but nothin' more than that. I've seen what happens when things get a little too close. Disrupts the mission."

She shrugged, "Just me experience, though. I imagine solo work isn't so bloody by the books, hey?"

"A lot of the people on this island are hard not to get close to," she says with a soft smile. "'Cause some of them are just too damn adorable. That's how I met Page, you know." She looks over at Anna with a grin. "Saw him sitting on his back deck, looking all sad, so I had to just come over and cheer him up."

"I'm bloody good at keepin' things platonic, love," Anna assured her, "I don't reckon it'd work out for me. When I'm not in the field, maybe, but for now I'd rather focus on me work."

"Oh no, that's what I meant," she says with a soft laugh. "Like making close friends and such, you know?"

"Close friends aren't me style," Anna said, "Move around too much to keep that shite up. If work is steady here, though, who knows?"

"Just a bit cynical," Anna winked, "You've got a good head on your shoulders, love."

"Actually, a lot of other people on the island seem to think we're going to stay together forever," she says, nodding her head. "Alijah says he's very special, and when we hung around with Senga, Tucker, Ryan, and Riley, they were all kinda like 'awwwww so cuuuuuuuute' about it."

Anna laughed and put up her hands.

"Don't listen to an old slag like me, then," she grinned, "Don't think I've met any of that mob yet. Slowly makin' me rounds, though. Best get to know the folks I ought to be workin' with."

"Well, most of the people on the island are really cool." Kaden nods, smiling a little. "Chris, Alijah, Tucker... all them are REALLY awesome."

"I'll make sure to give them a hello," Anna nodded, "Quite a few people around. I was going to head over to me neighbor later. Usually the booze fairy is well received. I'll have to meet this marvelous bloke of yours, too."

"Who's your neighbor?" she asks, looking toward the window to see. Sometimes, all the bungalows look exactly alike, to her.

"Dunno! That's why I'm going to say hello," Anna smiled, "I'm in sixteen, so one of the ones next to that."

"Bad sniper!" Kaden scolds, pretending like she's hitting her with a newspaper. Only not really, because this chick could DEFINITELY rip her to pieces, yup. "Well, I'm in 11, so if you ever want to stop by to say hello, feel free!'

"I'll do that," Anna said, standing, figuring that was Kaden's exit line, "Bloody nice meeting you, Kaden. If you ever want a free drink, you know where to come."

The older sniper stuck out her hand for a shake.

Kaden gives her hand a firm shake, grinning. "I'll see you around, sweetie." She gives her a hug, too, before walking out the door.